The present invention relates to a carrier device, which, in one preferred embodiment, is a bike carrier that is suited for attachment to a vehicle. The present invention further features a modular carrier structure that is interconnectable with other carrier structures to form a carrier assembly with the modular carrier structures preferably being arranged in a vertically stacked or staggered arrangement.
A plurality of bike carrier designs have been developed including compact strap designs that position a bike on the upper surface of a bumper and rely on strap, buckle and trunk hook components to secure the bike to the body of the vehicle. Examples of this type of bike carrier can be seen in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,118,018 and 5,038,980. In addition to the potential damage to the vehicle created by the hook and buckle components, bike carriers of this type are generally limited to single bike support and also often involve a great deal of set up and adjustment. One advantage of this type of carrier is, however, that they can be made rather compact for shipping and retail shelf space requirements.
There also exists in the art carriers for bikes and other items that include components that attach directly to a vehicle body such as the roof of the vehicle. An example of this type of carrier can be seen in U.S. Pat. No. 5,884,824. These type of carriers are applied on a more permanent basis as compared to the hook and strap arrangements described above and thus are typically not easy to remove and instal and also introduce the added possibility of damage to the vehicle body.
The prior art also features bike carriers that are designed to extend out away from the rear end of a vehicle from an attachment point in the bumper region of the vehicle such as from a square hitch common on many vehicles, particularly sports utility vehicles or SUV""s. Many of these bicycle carriers include carriers with a relatively lengthy vertical main support bar from the top of which extends horizontal support beams that are provided with clamps or the like to attach to a bicycle generally in an upper region of its frame. Examples of this type of bicycle carrier can be seen in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,476,202; 5,469,997 and 5,373,978. As having to attach clamping components, typically fall bike weight supporting clamping components, to the more susceptible painted frame regions of bicycles is undesirable, carriers that attach to a rear end of a vehicle also include carriers that are not designed for attachment to the upper or internal frame structure of a bicycle or other wheeled appliance, but are designed for providing an underlying platform on which the bicycle can be positioned. Prior art examples of this latter type of bicycle carrier include, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,025,932; 5,377,886; 5,497,927; and 5,570,825. While these type of carriers avoid the drawback of having attachments extending near or in contact with the bicycle""s upper, interior frame structure, they generally suffer from a plurality of other problems, such as being (1) highly complex in design; (2) not very versatile from the standpoint of being able to accommodate for variations in the desired number of bikes (e.g., motorbikes or bicycles); (3) not able to accommodate a large number of bikes; not well suited for ease in loading (e.g. difficult wheel or fork latching or the positioning of handle bars of multiple bikes at a common level, conflicting relationship); (4) bulky to the extent of presenting difficulties from the standpoint of, for example, shipping, retailer shelf space requirements and high customer handling weight; and/or (5) formed of a large number of unique components making for high manufacturing and purchase costs as well as difficulty in customer assembly.
The present invention is directed at providing a carrier device that is directed at avoiding or alleviating the various problems described above as being associated with the prior art. The present invention features a carrier device, which, in one preferred embodiment, is a bike carrier that is suited for attachment to a rear end of a vehicle such as by way of a hitch, tow ball platform or bumper attachment. A preferred embodiment of the present invention features a modular carrier structure that is interconnectable with other carrier structures to form a carrier assembly with the modular carrier structures preferably being arranged in a vertically stacked or staggered arrangement as they extend out away from the rear end of a vehicle. The vertical stacking arrangement provides the advantage of being able to retain an underlying bike support relationship while avoiding having the clearance level of the rearmost bike supporter subject to scraping during certain vehicle travel conditions (e.g., steep driveway aprons or rough terrain such as that often faced during off-road travel). Thus, because of this modular stacking arrangement, a large number of bikes can be carried (e.g., 4) while avoiding scraping problems. In addition, the vertical stacking arrangement positions the handle bars of many bike at alternate levels so as to avoid loading and unloading conflicts. Loading and unloading conflicts are also easily avoided under the design of the present invention by facilitating an alternate placement of each bike on each carrier.
A preferred embodiment of the present invention also features a modular arrangement wherein a user/customer can choose the number of individual carriers (preferably each a self-contained one bike carrier) desired. For example, a single person may wish to purchase just a single, self contained modular carrier structure and not incur the expense of a multi-support carrier and yet also wish to keep the option open for later expansion. A couple on the other hand, may prefer to purchase two modular carrier structures (one attached to the vehicle and the second attached to the one attached to the vehicle), and yet also keep open the option for later expansion without having to discard or sell the earlier purchased modular carrier structures. Furthermore, with the modular nature of the present invention an expanding family can add on to a prior number of purchased carriers based on the exact number needed. Also, because a preferred embodiment of the invention features modular carrier structures that are the same in all respects or have the exact same design (or at least the same design for all extensive purposes) there is avoided confusion both at the manufacturing level (e.g. which product is being shipped out) and at the customer level (avoiding having to return items because the purchased item was not the one intended). In addition, the preferred modular carrier support of the present invention features a highly symmetrical arrangement wherein all or essentially all of the components attached to a central element are in same design pairs and mutually useable on either side (making for high efficiency manufacturing and also ease in customer assembly once purchased).
The present invention also has the advantage of being able to have a compact break down arrangement which is beneficial from the shipping container and storage requirements (particularly from the standpoint of a retailer shelf storage requirement which is at a premium). The arrangement of the present invention is also able to provide the numerous advantages described above while avoiding the introduction of a large number of components, particularly a large number of different designed components, which again avoids many of the manufacturing, assembly and use difficulties associated with the prior art.
The present invention also provides a design that allows for rapid loading and unloading of one or a large number of bikes (e.g., 4) while still providing high stability and position maintenance assurance to the user. This is particularly true following the initial sizing of the carrier wheel cradles (which in itself is easy to achieve under the present invention) wherein the user can simply insert and remove the bike from the preadjusted cradle(s) without having to further manipulate the preset cradle position. A preferred embodiment of the invention also includes an easy to perform tie down assembly which relies on the underlying modular carrier structure(s), preferably eye-loop bolts joining together components of the carrier) for quick attachment of a single tie down strap while avoiding the placement of any buckles or the like that can lead to scratching of a bike""s painted outer coating.
An alternate arrangement of the present invention features a modular carrier with a first wheel hold or placement device at one end, an intermediate support device and preferably, a second wheel placement device. One embodiment of the invention features a cradle as the second wheel placement device; a hold down strap device as the first wheel placement device and an intermediate support device comprising a support post which supports a bike frame contact member preferably in the form of an angled support neck that has a low friction abrasion angle cap such as a plastic angle cap supported within the correspondingly angled support neck. For further tie down enhancement, the angled support neck comprises tie down strap reception slots and a tie down strap threaded therethrough for tie strap wrapping about the typically lower, sloped frame bar of a bike. Moreover, the bike frame contact member is preferably made adjustable with respect to the support post such as by way of a bolt/flat plate combination. The support post is preferably releasably secured in position on the remainder of the bike carrier such as by way of a bottom base plate with a bolt aperture for receiving the bolt which secures a side rail to the carrier extension support.
One of the preferred embodiments of the present invention features a carrier device comprising a first modular carrier structure having an extension support which includes, at a first end, means for connection with a vehicle and first modular member connection means, and having at a second end second modular member connection means. The modular carrier structure also preferably includes means for supporting an object to be carried such as a rail assembly for below support of the wheels of a bike or the like. The means for supporting an object such as a bike includes a first brace connected with said extension support and a side rail structure to which the brace is attached. The first brace is preferably a first bridge brace having a central portion connected to said extension support and more external sections connected to an under surface of said side rail structure. In addition, in one embodiment of the invention the means for supporting includes a second bridge brace having a central portion connected to said extension support and more external sections connected to an upper surface of said side rail structure. Further, in a preferred embodiment of the invention, a common bolt extends through the bottom base plate of the support post of the intermediate support device, the corresponding external section of the upper bridge brace, through the side rail structure, and then through a corresponding external section of the lower bridge brace.
Each bridge brace is, in one embodiment, a centralized bridge brace structure in that said external sections thereof each extend less than 4 inches out from an adjacent most side section of said extension support. With this type of bridge structure the side rail structure includes a first side rail and a second side rail, with the first side rail having an internal end juxtaposed to said extension support and sandwiched between above and below positioned external sections of said first and second bridge braces, and said second side rail has an internal end juxtaposed to said extension support and sandwiched between above and below positioned external sections of said first and second bridge braces. The first and second side rails also have a common design and are in contact or within xe2x85x9 of an inch of contact with respect to said extension support. Preferably the upper and lower bridge braces have a common design. The extension support also preferably includes a set of aligned holes and said bridge braces include apertures positioned for alignment with said set of aligned holes in said extension support, and said carrier device further comprising a connector that extends through each hole of said set of aligned holes and within each of said apertures of said bridge braces. The support post of the intermediate support device can thus be easily switched to one side or the other of the extension support by choosing which side rail/bridge brace combination to use as the support platform for the support post.
A central bolt/nut combination is suitable for the purposes of the present invention, and each of said side rails including a set of aligned side rail holes at respective internal ends, and the external sections of said bridge braces have apertures which are positioned for alignment with vertically aligned side rail holes of a corresponding side rail sandwiched therebetween, and said carrier device further comprises connectors such as bolt/nut combinations which extend through respective vertically aligned sets of the side rail holes and within the apertures of corresponding above and below bridge braces. As noted above, in the embodiment featuring a vertical, intermediate support device for contact with a bike component other than the wheels such as contact with the underside of the typically lower sloped frame section of a bike (extending from the handle bar support post to the crank case hub), the base plate of the support post can be secured to the upper bridge brace""s external wing section by the same connector that extends through holes in the side rail to secure the bridge brace and support post to the side rail/extension support combination.
A carrier device of the present invention also includes a first bike holding member and a second bike holding member supported by respective side rails to opposite sides of said extension support, and wherein said first bike holder is adjustably supported on one of said side rails and free to slidably adjust from an external end of said one of said support rails to said bridge braces. The first bike holder is free to slide along said one of said support rails from a free end thereof to a location at least 4 inches from said extension support without obstruction with respect to the bike carrier in a fully assembled state. The second bike holder is adjustably supported on an oppositely positioned one of said two side rails so as to be freely slidable from a free end of said oppositely positioned one of said two side rails to a location at least 4 inches from said extension section without obstruction.
In one embodiment of the invention, each of said bike holding members preferably includes a V-shaped bar cradle having a pair of legs extending off from a corresponding pair of base extensions, and said base extensions being supported by a sliding member designed for side rail sliding contact, and said holding members including a fix-in-position device for precluding movement of said sliding member, and said V-shaped bar section extending at a greater angle outward of a vertical plane than that assumed by said base extensions. An alternate embodiment of the invention, which is particularly suited for use with a bike hold down means that includes the aforementioned intermediate support device, features a first wheel placement device in the form of a flexible hold down device such as a strap with strap locking means such as a buckle, clasp, or VELCRO(trademark), hook and loop fastener. The flexible first wheel placement device is particularly suited for use with the V-shaped, angled neck support of the intermediate support device as the latter provides a degree of lateral support like a wheel cradle, and yet, the strap is easy to position and fix in the desired position in a wrapping arrangement about the wheel of a bike.
An alternate embodiment of the invention features a second modular carrier structure having an extension support which includes, at a first end, means for connection with a vehicle and first modular member connection means, and having at a second end second modular member connection means. The second modular carrier structure also includes means for supporting an object to be carried. The second modular carrier structure is connected, through use of its first modular member connecting means and the second modular connection means of said first modular carrier structure with the first modular carrier structure in a vertically offset arrangement wherein the extension support of said second modular carrier structure has an upper surface above an upper surface of the extension support of said first modular carrier structure. Preferably the lower surface of the second modular member is flush with an upper surface of the first modular carrier structure when assembled together.
The extension support of each of said first and second modular carrier structures is preferably a tubular member and the means for connection to a vehicle for each of said first and second modular carrier structures includes a first set of aligned holes, and said first modular member connection means of both said first and second modular carrier structures includes a respective set of aligned holes, and said second modular member connection means of both said first and second modular carrier structures also includes a respective set of aligned holes, and a connector is designed to extend through the aligned holes of the first modular connection means of the second modular carrier structure and through the below positioned aligned holes of the second modular member connection means of said first modular carrier structure. Also the first and second modular carrier structures are interchangeable and of the same design with respect to which one connects to the vehicle and which one connects to the modular carrier structure connected to the vehicle. In one embodiment of the present invention the connector connecting the first and second modular carrier structures also extends through the central region of the bridge braces of the first (below) carrier structure directly supported by the vehicle. In view of the multi-purpose functioning of this connector (e.g., a fastener for the upper and lower bridge braces of the first carrier structure as well as the upper and lower arranged stacked modular carrier structures, the connector is sized rather substantially (e.g., a 5xe2x85x9xc3x973xc2xdxe2x80x3 bolt with corresponding washer and nut). When a single modular carrier device is all that is needed then the aforementioned connector is used only to secure the bridge brace(s) to the extension support. In this way, a connector is readily provided when switching from a single modular carrier structure mode to a multi-carrier structure mode.
In addition, under the present invention, it is preferable to have bikes stacked in an alternating front-back relationship in going out from the first supported bike closest to the vehicle. The arrangement of the present invention is well suited for handling this alternate positioning of a plurality of bikes. For example, in the bike hold down means of the present invention, there is included a first wheel placement device (such as a hold down strap, an intermediate support post device and a cradle) with each being readily releasable for relocation (or readily initially positionable) to assume the desired location. That is, the strap and cradle are easily positionable on either of the opposite side rails and to essentially any position along the side rail length by simple manipulation of the respective locking device. Also, the intermediate support device with support post and height adjustable angle neck can easily be switched from one side rail to another simply by fastening its base to the desired bridge brace wing extension through use of the corresponding wing extension connector. In this way the first centralized support post is positioned to one side of the double stack modular carrier structures while a second is positioned to the opposite side as the first. The same thus being true with respect to the straps and cradles.
A carrier device is also featured in the present invention which includes a third modular carrier structure of a common design as said first and second modular carrier structures and said third modular carrier structure being arranged so as to be vertically offset from said second modular carrier structure upon said third modular carrier structure being interconnected with said second modular carrier structure. In addition, when using an intermediate support device, the first and third modular carrier structure would have the same intermediate extension support position, while the second modular carrier structure would have an opposite side intermediate support device position. A fourth modular unit can also be added to the third in the same manner as described above with respect to the second modular carrier structure to the first with the fourth having the same intermediate support device position on the second. In this way the carrier structures can be attached such that said second modular carrier structure assumes a stacked, vertically offset relationship with respect to said first modular carrier and so on outward depending on the number of carriers added on.
The invention also features a carrier device for supporting bikes that comprises a first modular carrier structure having a bike support platform, a second modular carrier structure having a bike support platform, and means for releasable interconnection of a forward end of said second modular carrier structure to a rear end of said first modular carrier structure such that said second modular carrier structure is positioned vertically above and offset with respect to said first modular carrier structure.
Also, the first and second modular carrier structures preferably each include centrally positioned extension supports, and the extension support of the second modular carrier structure is laid on top of a rear portion of the extension support of said first modular carrier structure, and said means for interconnecting includes a connection member which extends through each extension support so as to lock said extension supports in a stacked relationship.
The present invention also features a bike carrier device that comprises an extension support, and a side rail structure supported by said central extension support and having side rail sections extending to opposite sides of said extension support and each of said side rail sections being in contact with said extension support. There is included a pair of wheel cradle assemblies positioned on said side rail structure on opposite sides of said extension support and at least one of said cradles being adapted for slidable adjustment on a respective, supporting side rail section. Also, at least one of said wheel cradle assemblies including a releasable fix-in-position device for fixing a corresponding one of said wheel cradle assemblies in a desired position on said side rail structure. The releasable fix-in-position device also includes a wheel hold down device which includes a flexible member pinched between said cradle and a supporting one of said slide rail upon said fix-in-position device being in a locked state. The wheel hold down device also includes a flexible strap with loop adjustment and securement means that enables the strap to be opened, wrapped around a wheel and secured in a hold down state. In one embodiment, the wheel hold down device is a strap used alone to hold one wheel down in place of a second cradle while an opposite wheel cradle is still used on the other wheel. In addition, there is preferably provided a more centralized vertical post with bike frame securement member (preferably in the form of an angled V-shaped neck with a corresponding V-shaped plastic frame protection insert and a corresponding (additional) frame hold down strap). The flexible member in each embodiment, is preferably a nylon strap with securement means for fixing one section of the strap to another section so as to form a wheel locking loop. Preferably, the pinching cradle structure includes a V-shaped section and a pair of base sections, and said V-shaped section extends from vertical at a first angle between 30 and 60 degrees and said base sections extend at 0 to 10 degrees with respect to a vertical plane.
Thus, one embodiment of the present invention features a bike carrier that includes an extension support having a vehicle support end and a second end as well as a side rail structure supported by the extension support. The side rail structure has a first section extending to a first side of the extension support and a second section extending to a second side of the extension support, and the first and second sections are arranged for supporting a respective wheel of a bike when in use. The carrier device also includes a first wheel hold down device positioned on the first side of the extension support and an intermediate support device supported by the extension support (e.g. either directly or indirectly such as via an intermediate side rail section) so as to contact a frame component of the bike when in use. The intermediate support device has an upper frame contact section that is positioned, when is use, for contact with the lower sloping frame component of the bike which extends to the hub typically. The upper contact section includes a sloped neck section which includes a frame reception recess of a slope generally (within, for example, 10 degrees) corresponding to that of the sloped frame section received in the recess. A frame hold down device such as a strap is threaded through the neck section for wrapping around the sloped frame section of the bike. The intermediate support device is also preferably adjustable in height by way of a position adjustment device that allows the upper contact section to be adjusted with respect to a lower support post section of the intermediate support section and fixed in position by said position adjustment device at a desired bike frame contact height. In addition to the intermediate frame contact device and the first wheel hold down device (which is preferably in the form of a cradle slideable along the rail structure) a second wheel hold down device such as an independent strap is provided for the second wheel with the strap being readily wrapped and removed following the securement of the frame and either the prior sliding of a wheel into the cradle or the sliding of the cradle to the wheel after frame attachment. The invention also feature a bike carrier assembly having first and second modular carriers which have the same structure or substantially the same and are readily interchangeable between a direct vehicle support position or an indirect vehicle support position wherein the non-directly support modular carrier structure is staggered upwardly and secured to the back of the free end of the direct vehicle supported carrier structure. In one embodiment a common connector connects the first and second modular carrier structures while also securing in position a side rail supporting brace. The base of the intermediate support device is also preferably secured in position by way of a connector that is used to secure one of the side rails to one side of a bridge brace supported by the extension support. The intermediate support device can thus be easily switched to opposite sides of the extension support by use of different wing sections of the bridge brace.